Month: May 2019

Get Out – Jordan Peele’s first film I had avoided because I was afraid. I am really disappointed that I did, as this film is not focused on being scary. Rather it is focused on its social commentary, a welcome relief. The beginning build up is slow but incredibly well done, as it keeps us engaged with what will happen next. The finale is a bit over the top, and the story itself goes a bit overboard. That does not take away from what this film accomplishes, as it manages to be a fun and engaging horror with commentary to make it unique. Jordan Peele is a man of the pop culture moment, and it is understandable why this film elevated his status. 7.5/10

Widows – This was a film I wanted to see last year but unfortunately was unable to. This movie does a terrific job at being tight and ratcheting up emotion without using too much dialogue. It is also a unique Heist movie, as it forces characters into a heist rather than make them willful participants. It gives a heist film plenty of emotional weight, making it that much more rewarding than I expected. It also tells an incredibly complex story, but one that is deeply satisfying. My biggest complaint is that its tightness works against the film, as it is simply too complicated to compress. Complicated plots lead to subplots which lead to more subplots. I wish there were more time to really explore this but it simply runs out of time. This would have made for a terrific TV miniseries, but instead it is a very good movie, one still worth seeing even if it can be a bit confusing. 8/10

This album is so pretty, confident, and considered that you wonder why he named it IGOR. Tyler, the Creator’s not a freak or a goblin or a monster anymore.

I love Tyler, The Creator and with his release of his new album IGOR he begins to reshape his style after coming out of the closet on Flower Boy. His maturity is beginning to show, which is a much appreciated step since his days with Odd Future. One of my favorite parts of this album is how he plays with different gender roles, and attempts to craft a new persona. Particularly the music video for the song “Earfquake,” shows him playing with stereotypes and ideas that are brilliant.

However, I still wish he had an edge, and I miss it on this album. It is still a great project full of terrific songs, but it is about their artistic quality and less about Tyler’s emotions. Tyler’s emotions are what I find the most captivating, and that is sorely lacking on IGOR. Part of what attracted me to Tyler was his deep-seated anger, and how he dealt with it. In my favorite album of his, Wolf, he brilliantly fluctuated between anger and appreciation, struggling to put his feelings into music. This album feels earned after the success and sincerity of Flower Boy, and I am glad that he has begun to figure out how to be happiest. I just miss some of the edge that got him famous in the first place, and I wish it was more present here.

I have had some time now to process the moment that brought me to tears today. Tottenham have been having a tough season, struggling with a tired and beaten down squad. Yet at the beginning of today Tottenham found themselves still with a chance to advance to a Champions League Final, which would be a remarkable feat for Mauricio Pochettino and his Spurs.

When the game first started Ajax quickly got out to a lead making the aggregate deficit seem impossibly large. At the end of the first half, the score on aggregate was 3-0. It seemed insurmountable. Yet, the second half seemed to give Tottenham more life, and they quickly pounced on the opportunity. Lucas Moura found the back of the net twice in four minutes, changing the complexion of the game. After those two goals however, Tottenham seemed destined to lose. Everything was close but not quite going in. Then in the last minute of stoppage time, Lucas Moura pulled out the sweetest of finishes to complete his hat trick and advance to the Champions League Final on away goals.

How lucky we are to be entertained by such brilliance. Liverpool yesterday did the impossible, and today Tottenham did something even more spectacular. It is hard to put into words just how gratifying this is. This Pochettino team has been the best Tottenham Squad in recent memory, and yet have not been able to get near a trophy. Now they are just one win away from the biggest trophy in Europe.

Ajax deserve all the credit in the world for there performance throughout this season. They are an incredibly talented and gifted young side with so much heart and spirit. They should be proud of the season they had, and all of the players on that team have an incredibly bright future.

With that said, it is hard not to feel immense pride for my favorite team. Now just one game against Liverpool is between us and the Champions League trophy. June 1st cannot come soon enough.

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Ash is Purest White – This movie was not made for me or many of the people that read this blog. However, it is full of beautiful movements and moving historical portraits of Chinese Society. Watching the transition of Bin and Qiao from confident and smooth to brutalized and chiseled is genuinely fascinating to watch. I also loved Zhao Tao as Qiao; she captures the transformation of Qiao beautifully. Watching her sacrifice and struggle to save a dying relationship is brilliant and heartbreaking.

My biggest problem with this movie is that it is too slow. It can feel dragging and it requires a deep knowledge of Chinese History to understand all of the themes. Much is touched upon outside of the relationship between Qiao and Bin, mainly the change of China itself. Without it, many of the sweeping and slow-developing themes are hard to understand. While part of the joy in this movie is about thinking and reading upon it after, I have to be honest to my experience in the theater. There were times when I just wanted the movie to end. I would check my watch, groan, and continue. Some of this is by design, as you can feel the change in their relationship slowly grind to a halt. However, it is a stylistic choice that breeds boredom. Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame is nearly 30 minutes longer, and yet it never felt as if it was slow or dragging. This movie felt much longer. However, for the right audience, this film is a must-watch. It is not an easy movie to enjoy but if you spend the time with it, you will be rewarded. 7.5/10

Fluoridation of drinking water seems to help reduce tooth decay in children, but there is insufficient evidence that it does the same for adults. Some data suggest that regular flossing, in addition to brushing, mitigates gum disease, but there is only “weak, very unreliable” evidence that it combats plaque. As for common but invasive dental procedures, an increasing number of dentists question the tradition of prophylactic wisdom-teeth removal; often, the safer choice is to monitor unproblematic teeth for any worrying developments.

I hate the dentist and I am sure I am not alone. I have always been lazy about oral hygiene, so part of my interest in this article is my need to undermine dentistry in any way. However, this article points out plenty of troubling problems with dentistry. Oral hygiene is certainly important, but if we cannot guarantee a certain level of quality from dentistry we need to seriously question how we should take care of our teeth. Even if you love the dentist, this is a brilliant article worthy of a read.

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In the first ever piece I wrote for this blog, I was critical of Avengers: Infinity War. My opinion stands firm on that movie, as it was bloated and confusing. The mere fact that they were able to pull it off was impressive, but that does not make it a good film.

Endgame is certainly longer than it needs to be, but it is much better than Infinity War. The cast is much smaller, allowing the plot to be more focused. The movie is slower but really allows each moment to feel earned. It manages to work for fans who may not be as into Marvel (like me) while still giving fan service for those fans who have really invested in these films. It also has (light spoiler alert) fitting ends for both Captain Marvel and Iron Man. Watching both characters get the send off they deserve was certainly thrilling. I also thought Thanos was much more compelling in this film than in Infinity War. In the last film it felt like he was just getting the stones just to say he could. Now, his motivations, or at least his patience and persistence, come to bare more fruitfully. It gives him a better arc, making his quest and (light spoiler alert) failure much more meaningful.

My only regret with this film is that I did not always know enough to understand the reference being made to which precise film. I wish I was more in tune with the rest of Marvel to understand the movie as a whole. That being said the film did a great job of allowing everyone to enjoy the ride. That along with a more intricate plot gave the movie much more backbone than many of the other Marvel movies. While I may personally not connect with Marvel as much as others, this movie is an important feat. It rewarded fans for their patience and dedication, while still blasting records at the box office. That is a true accomplishment and everyone at Marvel should be proud. 8/10